


#78 By and By

by shineexofest



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee
Genre: Crushes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 09:33:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11780358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shineexofest/pseuds/shineexofest
Summary: Prompt #78: Chanyeol agonises over his crush on a rainy afternoon but sometimes problems like this don't need more than a little hope and luck. Pairing: Chanyeol/Minho





	#78 By and By

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to E so so much for the work she did last minute to help me, to S for cheering my on. Thanks to life for giving me a job (but no thanks too because it meant I got less time to write). And finally, thanks to my prompter and the mods of the fest! I'm sorry I wasn't able to write the book and a half this deserved. [terminator voice] I'll be back.

Chanyeol squints out the window, trying to piece together the sign he knows is blinking in a neon purple through the spatter of the rain against the pane of glass. It’s a Monday afternoon and he’s just gotten back from classes, there’s coursework sitting on his desk and honestly, he’d rather pass out against the glass than do any of it.

The dull opening plinks of Raining in My Heart roll through his tiny apartment, the little speaker on the kitchen counter having no issue filling the entire space. It’s not like the half bookcase-wall thing-y separating the kitchen/eating area from his bedroom area was doing anything to stop the filter of sound. For a second Chanyeol thinks about singing along, but his tongue trips over the sounds of the English words, he’s too tired for it...maybe if he just had a nap.

Shrill, like a warm knife through butter, the staccato ringtone he’d set for Jongin cuts through the gentle cooing of Buddy Holly’s voice. Heaving a sigh at the thought of having to acknowledge real life by answering Jongin’s call, Chanyeol reaches over to where his phone is charging anyway. If he didn’t answer, Jongin would come over anyway and he’d rather deal with him over the phone than having him raid the pantry. “Hello?” his voice is scratchier than he’d like it to be but he writes it off, probably just sang a little too loud in the shower this morning.

Jongin’s smug, Chanyeol can tell before he’s even finished the first syllable, “Hey _hyung_ , are you at your apartment?”

He’s coming over to raid his pantry anyway. “I don’t have any good snacks.” he cuts in before Jongin can provide an excuse when they both know he’s coming over anyway.

“But you do have snacks?”

Watching the neon sign flash one more time Chanyeol shifts until he’s looking back into his apartment, lamenting the relatively short distance between where he is now and the door. “Yeah but they’re no-”

“Snacks are snacks are snacks.” Jongin says and there’s the smile that Chanyeol knows so well in his voice. His nose is probably all scrunched up and his eyes gathering little creases at the side.

Turning, he looks in the mirror, and it’s hard to say no imagining the way Jongin is probably already putting his wallet in his pocket or hailing a cab to catch to his place. “Yah, you’re going to have to pay me back for all my snacks you’re stealing. I’m the _hyung_ you know!” he chastises down the line, leaning his head on the window sill knowing that Jongin’s not going to take any of it seriously.

There’s an amused huff and the sound of a car door being pulled shut. “I’ve got snacks with me _hyung_ ” Chanyeol’s about to say something like a very stern ‘Good’ but Jongin cuts in before he can, with a cheek filled, “So don’t let your blood pressure get too high, it’s not good for old men.” Chanyeol manages to stick his tongue out before Jongin hangs up with his laugh rattling down the line.

Despite the disrespect, which is typical, Chanyeol and Jongin, they were more like same age friends than anything else. He’d come to expect the teasing. He’s smiling as he sets down his phone on his desk. Quickly, he casts a glance over at the pile of textbooks he’d picked up at the university store, and print-outs he’d been handed in the lectures today before rolling back over to look out his window.

Jongin comes barging in soon enough and Chanyeol wonders just how far away he’d been when he’d called. The sound of the door clicking shut behind him is enough that he’s roused from the near sleep he’d been enjoying, and the already conscious side of his brain asks if it’s really been ages or if it feels shorter because of the sleep. The rest of his still half asleep brain snaps back sometimes time is just like that as he rolls over on his bed, cracking his eyes open just a little, enough to see Jongin rooting around in a grocery bag planted on his kitchen counter. “‘m hungry.” he grumbles, reaching out to make grabby hands, despite the fact that Jongin has his back turned to him.

When Jongin turns around, his arms are stacked nigh on overflowing with varying chip packets with a couple of chocolate based snacks thrown in there for variation. “I know _hyung_.”

“I knew I gave you the key to my apartment for a reason.” he grunts, sitting up and blinking a few times to get his bearings. Scooting over on the bed, he makes some room for Jongin, even if his legs feel a little cramped -- he’d grown used to feeling cramped after he’d moved out.

Their eyes meet as Chanyeol grabs a bag out of Jongin’s arms, snagging it before the rest of the snacks tumble on to the bed. “The reason I have the keys to your apartment Chanyeol is because you managed to slip and fall in the bathroom twice within a week of moving in and you needed someone who could make sure you had clothes on before the ambulance dudes arrive.” Jongin says, voice even as he cracks open a bag of chips, pulling his lips into a smile before biting into one of them.

“Ambulance dudes.” Chanyeol repeats softly, looking at his own bag of chips and pulling it open before turning back to Jongin. “They’re called paramedics and they do a fine civil service.” he chides, biting into the first of his own chips while he’s pretty sure that Jongin is on about his fifth and seems intent on downing them at an alarming rate. Though he’s not sure it should be alarming because it’s Jongin and he should totally be used to the rate with which this man goes through food at this point in the friendship.

Jongin pauses in his wolfing down of his chips, “Yeah,” Chanyeol’s about to claim victory but Jongin cuts him off like he usually does, “and that’s why they deserve not to see any of you that can be covered up by underwear.” There’s that stupid smile on his friend’s face and Chanyeol can’t help but answer with his own.

“Yah Jongin-ah, they might wanna see that!” he announces before dissolving into laughter, back hitting the wall that acted as the head of his bed as his friend laughed along with him. “First you come over to my house basically without warning then you mock me and my slipping over…” he trails off as he fixes Jongin with a knowing look and the obligatory accompanying smile. “What’s the reason you came over Jongin?”

He’s nudging his foot against Jongin at this point, egging him on for answers. Jongin instead just shoves it, raising his brows at Chanyeol. “I live like, less than a minute away from you Chanyeol. You literally see my apartment when you get out of the lift.” he explains it like it’s the most obvious thing in the world but really, it’s still not making sense to Chanyeol. Jongin heaves a sigh, rolling his eyes at Chanyeol. “I’m saving money on heating.” He explains, serious face breaking out into a smile. Chanyeol shoves him with his foot before popping another chip into his mouth.

“That’s not the reason but if you don’t wanna tell me the truth I guess I’ll just have to kick you out and eat all these snacks all by myself.” Not that he’d actually do it but, it’s good to keep Jongin in suspense and honestly right now the idea of gorging himself on all these snacks instead of starting all the reading for his classes seems like a damn good idea. Throwing a chip back into his mouth, Chanyeol sees the way Jongin’s jaw drops, AKA victory. He raises his brow in question, nudging Jongin’s thigh with an expectant smile.

A crunch answers him and for a moment, Chanyeol thinks he’s misjudged - maybe he hasn’t won after all, “I wanted to come over and ask if you’d gotten over your weird crush on your neighbour, Jinho? Minki?” He’s messing up the name on purpose, not willing to totally admit defeat and maybe, probably, definitely, irk the hell out of Chanyeol in the process.

Tipping the dregs of crushed chips into his mouth, Chanyeol sits up a little, propping his pillows under his back. “His name is Minho and the crush isn’t weird, it’s just a regular old, probably never going to happen crush that’s definitely not going away, no matter how much I want it to.” he grumbles, a fleck of chip stuck on his bottom lip for a second, before a pointed look from Jongin has him licking it away.

Jongin fixes him with a look, pulling his lips at the corner in a i-see-though-you-completely-and-totally kinda way but Chanyeol ignores it, tipping his attention back to his chips. “You don’t want the crush to go away.” Jongin says softly, knowing filling his voice in a way that only someone who’s been friends with Chanyeol for this many years can -- AKA a way that only Jongin can.

Fixing his gaze on the ceiling instead of having to meet Jongin’s eyes, Chanyeol mulls the thought over for a second, even considering that he doesn’t exactly have to answer. “He’s sweet Jongin.” he eventually says, blindly reaching out for a packet of the sweet biscuits filled with chocolates he’d seen in the mess of the chip packets Jongin had brought. After a few seconds of patting around on the bed one is shoved into his hand, he pulls it back close to his chest with a whispered “Thank you.”

“I bet he is sweet but, man, you’ve also never said more than three words to him and you only talk to each other in the lift.” It’s true and Chanyeol hates it. There’s some part of him that thinks Minho’s got a crush on him, but then again there’s like, a thousand other reasons he could be smiling at him like that. Hell, Chanyeol practically glows whenever he sees someone who’s close to his height so that’s just one of the reasons -- though it’s probably more likely that Minho’s just a REALLY polite guy. “He might not even y’know…” Jongin trails off nudging Chanyeol’s foot for the few seconds it takes to get him to roll his head back to look at him. He doesn’t need to finish the sentence, it’s something they’ve said between them enough times for Chanyeol to know exactly what he’s saying without the words slotting into place.

Instead of crying like he totally wants to (who doesn’t when they think about the fact that the cute guy across the hall might not...well even believe there’s a concept of cute guys?) Chanyeol just laughs. “I just want to hold his hand man.” he admits, smiling woefully at his friend, thinking back on the amount of times he’s said that and the amount of times he’s definitely not gotten to hold the person’s hand. He’s not had a high strike rate. “He seems like he’d tell good jokes and be nice to go on walks with y’know? Like he’d be good company.” His laugh is dry when he chuckles again, this time nudging Jongin’s thigh as he bites into one of the chocolate-y biscuit things. “Do I got a crush on him or do I just wanna be his friend?”

Jongin fixes him with a stare, munching down a few chips in one go as he watches Chanyeol’s face, eyes flicking across it like he’s looking into the very depths of his soul. He’s probably thinking about whether he’s got enough money to order in some black bean noodles. “You’re so far gone on him man.”

He’s not wrong Chanyeol thinks. The rain has eased up and his playlist has moved on, an upbeat organ plonking its way through his apartment, notes practically catching the sun’s rays sparingly, dropping them around his apartment in all the right places. “I have to water my plants.” he announces, getting up, schooling his face into an unbothered expression when he hits his head on the sloping roof above his bed. Stepping over Jongin’s legs he shoots his friend a glare when he tries to trip him. “I really do!” he points an explanatory finger over at the succulents that line his desk.

Jongin’s feet hook around his left leg and he’s got this serious look on his face that tells Chanyeol he’s not going to be able to get out of this and well if that didn’t just suck. “Either do something about it or forget about him Chanyeol. It’s not good to hold on to stuff like this.” Chanyeol bites back any comments about the amount of times he’d had to rub Jongin’s back and hold his hand while they watched rom-coms so he could get over a crush after they started dating and just smiles, dimple not quite showing.

He nods and Jongin nods back, slowly letting go of his leg and Chanyeol finally manages to get his fingers ‘round the handle of his miniature watering can. It looks a little ridiculous in his hands but it does the job well, holding just the right amount of water for all the little bonsai versions of his desert plants. “I’ll do somethin’, I promise.” he mumbles, wetting the soil of the aloe vera plant just under his pinboard, not turning to face Jongin.

“What was that?” Jongin calls out, then a crunch of one of those chocolate biscuit-y things. He probably stole Chanyeol’s.

Groaning, Chanyeol turns around, tiny watering can still in hand. “I said ‘I’ll do somethin’, I promise.” he repeats, emphasising each syllable, especially those of the last word. His smile is more of a grimace but it warms at the good and proper one Jongin gives him.

Chanyeol turns back to make sure he doesn’t pour water all over his desk and consequently the things he definitely had to finish reading tonight (or maybe tomorrow night...or the night after that). His mattress creaks a little as Jongin shifts and for a moment Chanyeol thinks it’s just because he’s repositioning himself to take up the now available space. Which is why it starts him so much when Jongin’s hand lands on his shoulder, squeezing tight. “I bet he wants to hold your hand too Chanyeol, I wouldn’t worry about it.” he squeezes quickly once again before pulling away, shuffling passed Chanyeol and towards the kitchen.

Recalling all the times Jongin had called him just to get advice on how to reply to a message Jongin had gotten from any one of his crushes, Chanyeol laughs. “You’d totally worry about it Jongin, I may have a massive crush on Minho but I wasn’t born yesterday.” The look on Jongin’s face belies the fact that he thought quickly about plastering a shocked expression on his face but decided against it.

Jongin pulls up his top lip, rolls his eyes and huffs out a “Yeah well! You’re paying for the black bean noodles I’m gonna order.” When Chanyeol opens his mouth to protest Jongin cuts him off with a deferential sounding, “You are the _hyung_.” It’s sweet and oh-so evil, and Chanyeol’s got nothing to argue against ‘cause damn, that’s the laws of time and space he’s talking about.

“Yah, just this once! Since you brought me snacks and let me complain about my crush.” he’s trapped in a corner and Jongin knows it but Chanyeol’s not about to admit that, he’s gotta make it seem like he’s just being a good friend. Blackmail had no part in this (it had a very big part in this).

Punctuating his surprise with a gasp, Jongin covers the speaker of his phone while he’s presumably being put on hold. “If I’d known that was all it took to get free black bean noodles out of you, I would have started asking way earlier.” he’s teasing and it’s working, Chanyeol feels his face heat up. He doesn’t talk about his crushes that often, or at least he thinks he doesn’t, it’s kind of hard to figure out if there’s a difference between talking about Minho just because they’re neighbours and well...because he wishes he was something else. Jongin mouths it’s a lot over at him.

He considers telling Jongin that he’s definitely not going to pay for the noodles and kicking him out so he can have the evening to just stew over his trademark feelings and the readings that went thud whenever you put them down but decides not to. Mostly just ‘cause it’d mean he’d have to call the noodle place himself and he doesn’t feel like talking to anyone other than Jongin, even if the guy was annoying. “Yeah yeah, just order the noodles before I kick your ass!” he calls out, looking over his shoulder long enough to catch the index finger pressed to Jongin’s lips and the glare.

Slowly, he closes his eyes, heaving another one of the sighs that seemed to be coming more frequently than usual this afternoon. If Jongin had noticed he’d probably say something about it being because he was love sick or something -- Chanyeol’s trying really hard to not think about that. At least when the noodles get here, there’s no way Jongin will risk the pause in eating that would come with talking. Chanyeol’d get the company without the way too accurate for comfort comments on his love life for at least twenty minutes. Worth the cost of a couple of bowls of noodles if he was being entirely honest.

-

His apartment is empty by three am with Jongin stumbling back to his room while clutching at his stomach, groaning something about needing to eat less before burping in a way that made Chanyeol super duper nervous. Naturally, in the interests of not getting stuck at Jongin’s apartment watching sappy dramas until four in the morning, he’d not followed him back. He’d told him to give him a call if he was sick or anything, but by the time it was 3:30 it seemed safe enough to climb into bed.

For a second he thinks about the fact that it’s a bad idea to allow himself to think about Minho at this late hour, especially with the way the stars hang in the sky and the light from a few blocks over warms the horizon. He’s just another fleeting fancy in Chanyeol’s life and it’s unlikely that anything’s ever going to come of it -- such is the life of a twenty something in Seoul.

Maybe he’d feel like things weren’t so doomed for him had he not learnt his neighbour’s name from some of his mail that had been accidentally delivered to his address. Wasn’t exactly telling about the nature of the likelihood that Minho was going to be showing any interest anytime soon. Still, Chanyeol can’t help the way he pulls his legs up, tucks them to his chest and tries to pretend that there’s someone behind him. The gentle rise and fall of their breathing isn’t there, nor is the warmth, but it’s enough to just imagine, maybe even hope just a little bit. “Better things have come from less.” he reminds himself as he nuzzles his head just a little further into his pillow.

He’s pretty sure that he hadn’t said that originally, it sounded too profound to be something he just pulled out of thin air. Probably something that Jongin had brought over...alternatively, something they’d both picked up from a drama they were watching while half drunk with a bucket of chicken in front of them. Sniffling softly, Chanyeol decides that both work equally well and that he definitely needs to get the fuck to sleep now otherwise he’s definitely not going to be awake for the things he’s got to do in the morning (grocery shopping).

Heaving a sigh, he pulls the thin blanket he'd gotten last week once he'd decided the summer heat was too much for the quilt he'd been using during spring, over himself. It takes a bit of rustling but eventually he's settled down and the trance of pretending someone's beside him wears off. It's just him alone and that's just fine. Chanyeol doesn't need anyone else to sleep soundly at night. He's just fine by himself. "I'm fine." he whispers to his pillow, as if reminding himself before sleep would bar his dreams from taking a different turn. He knows they will but it's worth a try.

Humour forces him to think a brief goodnight to the moon and the varying objects around his room before he rewards himself with one final "Go the fuck to sleep, Chanyeol.". It doesn't work quite immediately but at least the last thing on his face as the warm draw of sleep becomes too much is a smile -- a nice change from recent nights.

-

Sirens blast around his room as Chanyeol wakes up, and it's perhaps slightly telling that Chanyeol isn't waking up _because_ of the sirens -- unfortunate may be another way to describe it. He saves the "FUCK!" for when he looks over to the clock sitting on his bedside and he sees that he only has a good twenty minutes to be out the door in so he doesn't miss his bus. Usually he'd just shop at his local grocery store but there are a couple of things he wants to pick up for Taemin's birthday -- trust one of his closest friends (through Jongin) to have weird snack preferences.

Practically catapulting himself out of bed, Chanyeol snags his towel from where it hangs off the back of his desk chair before throwing himself into the closet that likes to claim itself as his bathroom. "Come on, come on." he whispers, ignoring the pounding in the back of his head. Despite the heat radiating off the windows over his bed, Chanyeol refuses to bathe in water that's cold, it's the principle of things. Leaving the tap to run, he shucks off his clothes, taking a brief moment to check a bruise on his chest he'd managed to give himself by throwing himself into bed and hitting the frame.

Thankfully, by the time he's finished doing that (with a healthy helping of generally indulgent mirror looking checking), the water has begun to run warm. Chanyeol steps under the spray, letting the rivulets run down his back for a moment before finally dipping his head under the water. It's soothing and massages out some of the knots that tend to make themselves at home in his shoulders as he sleeps. Showers were practically the only thing this building did entirely well, or at least his apartment's seemed to be good -- slight complaints could be made about the sharing of hot water but Chanyeol had generally found that hadn't gotten to be much of an issue. The pressure is just right, and it lulls him into a gentle state of relaxation, granting him respite before a day that's due to be _go, go, go, and go_.

But then the water runs cold, and Chanyeol knows his time has come to get out. Slowly, he toes around the outside of the stall, searching for the shower mat Taemin had forcibly purchased for him after the time he'd had to sleep over and the use of Chanyeol's shower (and the consequent slipperiness) had made him fear for his safety. He manages to drag it over with a little bit of effort and soon he's out of the shower, towelling himself off, hair first and working his way down. He's able to crane his neck a little and grab a glimpse of his clock on the night stand to realise that his shower was shorter than usual. Jongin probably used up most of the hot water this morning when he was trying to get up for work. Chanyeol would be angry but with the way rents had recently gone up, he doesn't blame Nini for wanting the extra shift.

Wrapping his towel around his waist, Chanyeol takes a moment to enjoy the feeling of the warm air drying his skin, with a little bit of help from his tiny fan. "I have to buy a new one." he grumbles, but lets out a quick sigh afterwards since he knows there's no way in hell he's going to do that. The type that he wants costs way too much, he'd probably have to save up several whole paycheques and right now he's not really in a position to do that. "One day." he promises, looking at the fan. "I'll throw you ou-" he wants to finish his threat but a knock at the door cuts him off. Another glance at his clock tells him it's probably Jongin back from his shift at the bakery wanting to hide out at his until the landlord got here since he forgot his keys.

"Coming!" he calls out towards the door before turning around to give the fan a rather stern warning glare. It was getting off lightly this time -- next time he wasn't going to be so merciful.

Stepping over a few of his dirty clothes from earlier on in the week (Jongin never minds), Chanyeol opens the door with one hand, holding his towel on his hip with the other. This would all be fine were it Jongin at the door, but instead of his best friend since pretty much ever, it's Minho, the smiley neighbour from next door who seems to have an uncanny knack for putting the wrong address down on his mail. And he's stark naked except for a towel around his waist too.

It takes Chanyeol everything he's got to not choke at the _very_ unexpected surprise waiting in his doorway, and bless him, Minho takes it upon himself to break the silence. "Well, one of us is going to have to change." he says in a tone that sounds totally unlike him but Chanyeol kind of likes it, makes him feel like they're closer than they actually are - like they're friends. "Sorry, I got that from a friend, Kibummie always acts like he owns outfits." Then his smile lights up more than it usually does and Chanyeol feels his heart clench with the stupid schoolyard crush all these feelings are.

Opening his mouth takes a couple of tries since he's pretty sure his heart is planning on jumping out the moment he does but eventually Chanyeol manages. "W-Why are you here _hyung_? They don't deliver mail on weekends." he hopes the thing about the mail helps make it sound like he's not interrogating him because that's definitely not what he's doing here - mostly just figuring out how much longer he has to be in this...situation.

Minho's eyes go wide and Chanyeol nods along as if he's privvy to the realisation. "Oh! The warm water just ran out and I can't have cold showers, I was just wondering if I could try yours? I think you're a little closer to the generator or whatever, Jonghyun- _hyung_ says that you guys on this side get it quicker?" Chanyeol fixes him with a skeptical look, he had no way of telling if the hot water did indeed get here quicker and while he'd like to help Minho, he'd prefer if he could do it while at least one of them wasn't topless. Apparently, his hesitation is clear and Minho's smiling that gentlemanly smile of his, "I wouldn't ask man, unless y'know I have to? I got this marriage date that my parents set up for me and they're not gonna be happy if I'm running late. They told me this one is kinda a long shot y'know? She's out of my league."

Chanyeol swallows and attempts to narrow his focus somewhere other than the ' _she's_ ' his over-analytical brain had helpfully been supplied. "Oh! Yeah sorry about that dude, my shower space is pretty small but go your hardest." Mentally cursing himself, Chanyeol steps back, smile warm as he feels his achilles tendon hit the small storage space he has for shoes. "Just on your left." he tacks on as Minho strolls across the threshold as if he isn't the man of Chanyeol's _literal_ dreams. He gets a sure nod before Minho disappears around the corner into the shower stall and Chanyeol's heart slowly drops out of his throat.

It's only when the water starts running and he hears a soft sigh of relief at the apparent warm water than Chanyeol edges from his spot beside the door. There's some shimmying and some shaking but eventually he's able to get a bookcase away from the wall enough that he can stand behind it without flashing Minho when/if he comes out of the shower stall before Chanyeol has finished changing.

From there it takes another few seconds of Chanyeol imagining what exactly would happen were Minho to come out of the shower before he was finished changing before he decides on _Possible Criminal Charges_ and leaves that thought well alone.

As it happens though, neither of them have to deal with that reality because by the time Minho does come out of the shower Chanyeol's already got on a loose tank top, and has just finished buckling his jean shorts. He goes to make some sort of very _bro_ comment about wanting Minho's date to go well -- possibly along the lines of **smashing** it but he's not decided before someone else is knocking at the door.

"Chanyeol!!!!!!! I forgot my keys!!!!!!!" Ah. Chanyeol turns with a warm smile, astutely keeping his eyes above Minho's neck, and sighs.

"That'll be Jongin, he likes to forget his keys and use it as an excuse to hide out at my place to eat my food until Jinki comes and unlocks his apartment." Minho nods, piecing it all together but Chanyeol doesn't wait around for him to say something because if he does then he's pretty sure he'd feel his heart fall out his ass, or possibly back in his throat - either way not preferable.

Breathing deep because this is going to be fun explaining to Jongin, Chanyeol walks to the door, picking up his dirty clothes on the way there. By the time he does get to the door he's got a healthy pile and it's a bit of an acrobatic exercise to open the door but then again, Chanyeol's always been very talented. "Hey Jong-" He starts but Jongin's already through the rather narrow opening he's got going and assumably is beelining towards the small couch he's got and/or the kitchen.

"God I'm so tired from my shift and our little heart to heart last night!" There's a break in his speech and for a moment Chanyeol thinks he's safe. Then comes the muffled (probably because of food in his mouth), "Minho- _hyung_ 's apartment door is kind of open, do you think he's okay?" Praying to whatever god was above, Chanyeol doesn't really mind, he hopes that by now that Minho's got some clothes on. "Oh hey Minho- _hyung_. Wait, _Minho-hyung_ , why do you have no clothes on and why are you in Chanyeol- _hyung_ 's apartment without clothes on?" This is Chanyeol's chance, he can still save this and explain it away and tell Jongin that whatever he's thinking, it's most definitely wrong about it.

He turns around, still stuck at the door with an armful of laundry. "I have a date." Minho says, locking eyes with Chanyeol and smiling as if this is helping in any sort of tangible way. Breathing deep, Chanyeol allows his eyes to slip shut and slowly thinks about all the ways he could possibly drop off the face of the earth right now. Jongin just does one of those slow-mo gasps and starts laughing -- while mostly likely spraying food everywhere in his surprise (because Chanyeol just couldn't have any small mercies in his pitiful life.)

Seemingly because he has no choice left, Chanyeol drops the laundry to the floor and steps over it (and maybe he's wrong about the small mercies because he doesn't fall over). He's too slow though and Jongin's clapping him on the back with a bright smile. "Congrats _hyung_! What'd you do? Go straight over after I left? You sly dog!" Because of course this could definitely get worse and no, Chanyeol was definitely right about those small mercies. "So what's this? Am I cockblocking right now? Is it even possible for me to cockblock you _hyung_?" Wow, this was definitely the worst situation Chanyeol has ever been in and he's woken up while the dentist was taking wisdom teeth out.

Time to explain. "He's straight Jongin, so no, cockblocking is definitely not going on, also the date isn't with me. It's a marriage date with some girl his parents want him to meet. I'm just helping out because the hot water ran out on his side of the building." Locking eyes with Jongin he nods to confirm his point before injecting a little bit of pleading into his gaze and looking over to Minho, who's looking confused more than anything else.

"I'm not straight." Minho says softly, still there in his really stressful half-naked state. "But the rest of that is definitely right. No cockblocking going on, I'd be a lot more upset if there were. Probably more naked too." And he smiles and starts walking towards Chanyeol, as if that's not the most intimidating thing anyone could do right about now.

For one merciful second, Chanyeol thinks he's just going to walk out and allow him to get to the activity of planning on moving far, _far,_ away. "Didn't know you were planning on knocking on my door for uh, adult purposes last night Chanyeol-ah." He tries to swallow but his heart blocks any movement and instead he just coughs a little instead. Minho's mouth quirks up at the side. "Would have made sure I stayed up had I known."

Jongin says everything Chanyeol wants to say with a nice and round, "Wah! He's so bold." before Minho winks and it takes everything Chanyeol's got to not faint right there and then because he's a mess and he has a big _BIG_ schoolyard crush on his _hyung_.

Minho gently pats him on the shoulder before sidling past and heading towards the door. Chanyeol watches him go, snapping his eyes up from his shoulders once Minho turns around to smile at him. "Remember Chanyeol-ah, I'm just next door if you ever need me." and with that he's out the door and Chanyeol's staring after him in a daze. Jongin's there next to him rather helpfully though, jolting him out of his trance with a bump of his shoulders against his upper arm.

"Fingers crossed that marriage date doesn't go that well." he says and Chanyeol's body has the good grace to snap out of it's daze such that he can slap Jongin helpfully in the shoulder, before bursting out into relieved laughter he didn't know he'd been holding on to. "I can't fucking believe this! Wait until I tell the boys at work, Yixing wouldn't leave me alone and until I told him what had kept me up so late!" Chanyeol's too incredulous that he'd literally just gotten an open invitation to go and talk to Minho _like that_ to find it within himself to be upset that Jongin has been talking about what goes on in their late night hang-outs. Besides, he likes Yixing.

Eventually his laughter does settle down and the sobering thought of Kyungsoo waiting for him at the coffee shop with Minseok hovering over him waiting for his order (and a chance to flirt) forces Chanyeol to start getting ready to head out. Jongin's made himself at home on his couch and Chanyeol gets his sweet revenge by lobbing the keys (gently) at Jongin's cheek. They hit their target fair and square and Chanyeol cackles with his dish best served cold as he pulls open the door. The fact that "I don't care if you don't wanna bang him, I was totally cockblocking just then! Dateblocking if you will!" manages to get out from his apartment before he closes the door doesn't even bother him.

Chanyeol's totally got a sorta kinda invitation to date his hot neighbour and not even Jongin's taunting and Kyungsoo being fake-grumpy about having to deal with a flirty barista can bother him.


End file.
